Prakash Joseph (President)
Prakash is from Mallappally, near Thiruvalla, Kerala. He completed his Bachelor of Science from Mahatma Gandhi University and moved on to do his Post-graduation in Computer Science. He has worked in Mumbai, India, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain before moving to Anderson, South Carolina, USA in 1999. With 18 years of IT experience, he currently works as the Lead Supply Chain Analyst with Southern Wine and Spirits, a leading Wine and Liquor wholesaler based in Florida. He is settled in Marietta, Georgia since 2006 with his wife Vibha, originally from Ettumanoor, Kerala and their daughter Hannah (11). He joined GAMA in 2000 and has been an active member for the past 14 years. He is also actively involved in most of the Malayalee community events and nonprofit organizations in Greater Atlanta area and has demonstrated excellent leadership skills. In his leisure time, he likes to spend time with his family and friends, cook, travel and play tennis.
Swapna Vacha (Vice President)
Swapna is originally from Aluva, currently settled in Suwanee with her husband Zach who is an engineer and her two children – Steven and Jillian. She got her Master’s degree from College of New Rochelle, New York and is currently working as an FNP at CVS Health. Swapna is an active member of St. Alphonsa Catholic church and has co-ordinated and participated in various community and cultural activities in Atlanta. Her favorite pastime is reading, watching movies, taking road trips with her family and eating out with friends.
Kannan Udayarajan (Secretary)
Kannan hails from Trivandrum, Kerala and has been living in Atlanta since 2007. He is a long time member of GAMA and has previously served the GAMA Board as its Treasurer. His wife Shikha is from Kannur and they have two kids, Janaki and Vikram. Kannan is an alumni of the Cochin University of Science and Technology and currently works as a Senior Project/Program Manager in the IT industry. He is an avid reader, passionate cinephile and a political junkie. Outside family and work, Kannan spends most of his time volunteering for Vibha, a non profit engaged in child development projects, where he has served as the National Director of Fundraising (2012-14) and Atlanta Action Center Coordinator (2010-11).
Deepak Alexander (Joint Secretary, Chair – Sports)
Deepak is from Calicut, Kerala. He is graduated from Cochin University of Science and Technology and completed his Masters in Business Information Technology from Middlesex University, London. He currently works as a Senior Software Engineer for the Georgia Professional Standards Commission and has been living in Atlanta, GA since 2009. His wife Sunitha Alexander works as a software engineer and they have a son, Juan Alexander (5). Deepak is an active participant in St. Gregorios Indian Orthodox Church, Atlanta and loves playing Badminton, Soccer and Cricket. He is passionate about working out at the gym and is an active member of a Health & Fitness Club where he assists trainers in conducting boot camps at his leisure time. He has served as GAMA executive committee member for the year 2015.
Binu Kasim (Treasurer)
Binu hails from Trivandrum, Kerala. He graduated from the prestigious College of Engineering, Trivandrum and completed his Masters from Georgia State University. He moved to Atlanta in 2011 and lives in Cumming with his wife Sheena and two boys Aman(10) and Arman(8). He is passionate about cultural activities, Cricket, Soccer and Tennis and has participated in several tournaments across North America. He works for the New Jersey based IT Outsourcing company – Cognizant Technology Solutions – in a Director capacity and has performed various roles in the field of Account Management, Delivery Management, Pre-sales, Product Management across multiple geographies including USA, Middle East, India.
Sunil Punathil ( Chair – Cultural Programs, Charitable Initiatives)
Sunil is a native of Aluva, Kerala, currently living in Suwanee with his wife Rabia and two kids – Mehnaz (16) and Faraz (12). He is an Engineering graduate from the Calicut University and currently works as a Project Manager for ADVA Optical Networking in Norcross. During his college days, he has won various National and University level prizes for Arts and Cultural events. On his family time, he love to watch his son play Basketball and watch his favorite Falcons or Hawks games
Nishad Pandarathodi (Chair – Member Services)
Nishad is from Tirur, Malappuram, Kerala. He is a computer engineering graduate from Mangalore University, currently working as a Project Manager for Cognizant in Dunwoody GA. He lives in Atlanta, GA since 2012. He has a great passion for sports, traveling, volunteering, team building and event management. He worked in UST Global Trivandrum and AppLabs (CSC) Hyderabad before moving to US. His wife is Mamcy, a Calicut native, and they have one child (Nivaan).
Sameera Yusuf (Chair – Food & Refreshments)
Born in Calicut, Kerala, Sameera was raised in Bahrain. She came to Atlanta in 2004 and lives in Duluth with her husband Azim and her son Zayan. She completed her B.Tech from University of British Columbia. She is currently working as a Senior Analyst with AT&T. Outside of professional interests, she likes to involve with charity organizations and has involved in fundraising efforts for Habitat for Humanity and Access Life America. In her leisure time, she likes to spend time with her family and friends, eat out at restaurants, watch movies and listen to music.
Ashwathi Dev (Chair – Women & Seniors Forum)
Ashwathi is from Cochin, Kerala and has been living in Atlanta since 2008. She did her MBA in Finance from Bangalore and currently works in the area of Corporate Valuations for Mergers & Acquisition Transactions. Her husband Dev is from Trivandrum, a Senior Solution Architect by profession and they have a son, Millan.
Aravind Rajasekharan (Chair – Information Technology)
Aravind is from Thiruvalla, Kerala and has been living in Atlanta from 2012 with his wife Manju and daughter Veda. He did his Bachelors in Electronics from Mahatma Gandhi University and currently works as a Senior Software Engineer at INCOMM. He is passionate about arts, music, DIY Electronics and also enjoys travel, hiking and reading.
Sanalkumar VS (Chair – Marketing)
Sanal is a native of Trivandrum, Kerala. He did his B. Tech in Applied Electronics and Instrumentation from College of Engineering, Trivandrum and then pursued the software profession. He is currently working for the Home Depot and lives in Smyrna with his wife, Geethu, who is working as a Sr. Quality Analyst in Wordplay Inc. He has a great passion for music, sports and any creative activities which involves new ideas. He has participated and won prizes for many cultural and sports competitions at school and college level. He was an active member of the School/college cultural committee and singing band. He is also playing in the current Atlanta city league Tennis tournaments. Sanal is a foodie and in his pastime, likes to have fun with his family & friends, watch movies, listen to music, learn piano, learn photography and try out different kinds of food.
Jaibu George (Chair – Youth Forum)
Jaibu is from Teaneck, NJ. He moved to the metro Atlanta area in 1999. At 22 years Jaibu is the youngest member of the GAMA Executive Committee and has already graduated from Georgia State University with his Bachelors in Computer Science and plans to pursue his Masters at Georgia Tech. He’s been very active in basketball tournaments in GAMA since 2008. Also he is currently the youth leader of St. Mary’s Syrian Orthodox Church, Stone Mountain. In his spare time he likes to spend time with family, play basketball/tennis, play video games and eat good food.
Radeesh Koonichere
Radeesh is from Kannur, Kerala. He has been in atlanta since 2014 and works at Manheim as a Senior Automation Engineer. An avid photographer and graphic designer, he has been volunteering his creative skills for Vibha, Raksha, GAMA and various other non-profits for the last few years. He enjoys travel, hiking, nature and gaming.
